


Flufftember #5

by adrianna_m_scovill



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Scars, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-07 06:22:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,689
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26348539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adrianna_m_scovill/pseuds/adrianna_m_scovill
Summary: Flufftember prompts:Willton (aka chillywilly...) - animals, first kissI've never written these characters before but this story will be continued into a kinktober prompt next month. Also, I don't typically write AUs but in this case I refuse to acknowledge some of the things that were done to poor Chilton like, you know...that whole burning incident...
Relationships: Dr. Frederick Chilton/Will Graham
Comments: 8
Kudos: 53
Collections: Flufftember 2020





	Flufftember #5

“Frederick,” Will said, not even trying to hide his surprise at finding Chilton on his doorstep. 

Chilton fidgeted, frowning. “Dr. Graham,” he said.

“I think we’re past the formalities, aren’t we?” Will returned, taking a step back and pushing the door wider. “Come in. Who’s your friend?”

Chilton glanced down at the dog standing beside him and fidgeted again, twisting the end of the leash in his hands. “Is it safe?” he asked, nodding toward the house where several dogs were gathered behind Will.

“Sure. If you’re calm, they’ll be calm.”

Chilton deliberated a moment longer before stepping past Will into the house. He didn’t need to tug the leash; his companion followed him into the house and pressed up against his leg while Will’s dogs sniffed her eagerly and curiously. Chilton tried not to flinch at the sound of the door closing behind him, but the hallway was suddenly too small. He swallowed and forced himself to take a slow breath through his nose.

Will sank into a crouch and reached out to pet Chilton’s dog. “What’s your name?” he asked quietly, smiling as the animal tipped her head into his hand.

“Daisy,” Chilton said. 

Will looked up at him. “I was thinking about you, you know?” he said, still speaking softly. “Wondering how you’re doing. You look good.”

“Considering,” Chilton said with a tight, humorless smile. 

Will rose smoothly to his feet. “I wasn’t going to qualify, actually. Come on in,” he said, moving past Chilton and further into the house. “It’s a little crowded here.”

Chilton didn’t like that Will had so easily read his discomfort, but he knew he shouldn’t be surprised. It was Will’s _thing_. His gift, as it were—although considering everything he’d been through because of it, and Hannibal Lecter, Chilton wasn’t sure he’d consider it anything other than a curse.

“I didn’t know where else to go,” Chilton heard himself admitting as he trailed along behind Will, the pack of dogs surrounding him. When Will had moved into the open space of the living room, he turned to face Chilton, and Chilton drew up short. “About the dog, I mean,” he said, gesturing toward Daisy with his free hand. “She belonged to a patient…” He trailed off, glancing away as he tried in vain to block the memory. 

“You’re seeing patients again?”

Chilton shook his head. “Call it a failed experiment,” he murmured. He sensed Will moving closer but couldn’t bring himself to make eye contact. “There was...an incident.”

“An incident?” Will repeated. He was close, close enough to read Chilton’s face, and Chilton had to resist the urge to flee. He wouldn’t make it far. He didn’t need the cane anymore—except on especially wet and chilly mornings—but he wasn’t going to be running any sprints in the remainder of his days.

“She, uh.” Chilton paused and licked his lip. He glanced at Will before looking down at the dog. “She took her own life.”

“I’m sorry, Frederick.”

“I thought it kindest not to allow the dog to wind up at the pound. She’s not young.”

“None of us are,” Will mused, surprising Chilton into a reluctant laugh. Will offered him a smile. “She can stay here, if that’s why you came.”

Now that they’d locked eyes, Chilton found it impossible to look away. He managed a small nod. 

Will reached out to lay a hand on Chilton’s arm. “But, Frederick. I’m so sorry for the pain you’re feeling. If anyone deserves a break, I’d say it’s you.”

Chilton opened and closed his mouth, unable to think of a response. He was horrified to feel the sting of tears, and he cursed himself a dozen times over. “After everything I did—” He stopped himself and shook his head. “She was the one in pain, and I didn’t help her. The very least I can do is find someone to take her dog.”

Will looked down at the dog in question. “Not an insignificant gesture,” he said, letting his hand slip from Chilton’s arm to pet the animal. The other dogs were milling about, still curious as they sniffed Chilton and Daisy but far better behaved than Chilton had expected. “We mustn’t let our empathy destroy us, though.”

Chilton snorted, waiting until Will looked at him before cocking an eyebrow. “Rich, coming from you.”

Will smiled. “You and I aren’t so different.”

Chilton rolled his eyes and turned to stroll into the room with as much swagger as he could manage. “You could interview every person who’s ever met me and the word ‘empathy’ would never come up.” He looked around, not having to feign his interest in Will’s house. The clutter was strangely comforting; the house had a distinct _lived in_ feel that Chilton’s place lacked. 

“Want something to drink?”

Chilton turned to face him and realized that Daisy was no longer attached to the end of the leash he was holding. Will must’ve unhooked her, and she seemed perfectly at ease with the other dogs. Chilton felt an unexpected pang at the knowledge that he’d be heading home alone, even though that had been the plan all along. 

“Have you eaten?” Will asked. “You’re welcome to stay for dinner.”

“I wouldn’t expect anyone to accommodate my diet,” Chilton said instead of refusing the invitation.

“I don’t eat much meat, anyway.” It was a simple statement, but Chilton could hear the complexities layered beneath, and the two men stood looking at each other for several seconds. Will understood things that Chilton could never put into words. It was a relief.

“Be that as it may,” he said, feeling like an idiot. He fidgeted again. He missed the cane. It gave him something to do with his hands. “I should go.”

“There’s a storm coming,” Will said with a nod toward the window. 

“Mm.”

“With this wind, it should pass through in a couple of hours.”

“The dogs tell you that?”

Will made a face. “They don’t talk much,” he said, and Chilton smiled in spite of himself. “It might be nice to have someone who does.” He walked toward Chilton, who fought the urge to take a step back. “I should’ve come to see you, Frederick. I wanted to…”

Chilton swallowed hard. “You were a little busy,” he said after a moment. “Besides which, you have every reason to hate me.”

“You know I don’t.” 

“I set you up to save myself.”

“You were gutted alive.” A violent shudder passed through Chilton, one he was powerless to suppress, and Will reached out a hand to touch his arm. “I’m sorry, we don’t need to talk about that.”

“No,” Chilton said bitterly, despising the tremor in his own voice, “we don’t need to talk about it. I’m reminded every time I—” He stopped himself again. 

“You don’t have to be scared.”

Chilton snorted. “I am not afraid of you.”

“No,” Will said, lifting his hand toward Chilton’s face. “Of being touched.”

Chilton stiffened, not quite flinching away from Will’s fingers. 

“May I?” Will asked. His hand was so close that Chilton could feel the ghost of his touch, a whisper of air against his cheek. Part of him wanted to whirl away, to flee while there was still a chance of escaping with a modicum of dignity. But there was another part, desperate and undeniable, that wanted to lean into Will’s hand and beg for his touch—for any kind touch.

Chilton swallowed hard, unable to look away as Will searched his eyes. “Alright,” he heard himself breathe, and his eyes fluttered closed when Will’s fingers brushed lightly against his skin. He made a small sound when Will’s thumb ran gently over the scar on his cheek and came to rest there, not pressing but simply _touching_. “I don’t need your pity,” he whispered, but there was no force behind the words, no resolve. 

“Is that what you think?”

Chilton opened his eyes. He saw sympathy in Will’s face— _empathy_. It wasn’t the same as pity, but Chilton’s stomach burned at the thought of Will feeling sorry for him. “I don’t _want_ your pity,” he amended in a low voice.

“You survived things most people could never imagine in their nightmares.”

“So did you.”

“Maybe,” Will said with a small smile. “But I almost lost myself. Some days I’m not sure I didn’t. You always held onto who you were.”

“An asshole?” Chilton suggested. His face felt warm, the heat spreading outward from Will’s hand, and there was no way to hide the color staining his skin. 

Still smiling, Will said, “You’re not as unlovable as you think, Frederick.”

Chilton’s breath caught in his chest, and he searched a bit frantically for some sign of mockery in Will’s expression. He felt a dam breaking inside of himself, and all of his pride and self-preservation and willpower were crumbling, replaced by nothing but an animalistic desire to be touched, loved, _seen_.

Chilton leaned forward before he realized he was moving, and his lips were almost on Will’s before he panicked and froze. He expected Will to recoil in horror, to shove him away, to tell him he’d misread the situation and mistaken simple kindness for something more intimate. 

Will closed the distance between them, slanting his mouth against Chilton’s as his other hand rose to Chilton’s jaw. His fingers slipped into Chilton’s hair as he held his face, and Chilton clutched at the sides of Will’s shirt to ground himself. Will’s kiss was off-center, and it took Chilton a few moments to realize that was for his benefit; Will wanted to make sure he could feel it. Chilton’s chest ached under the weight of such consideration. He could feel his body beginning to tremble.

Will pressed his forehead against Chilton’s, stroking his cheeks gently with the pads of his thumbs, and said softly, “I’m glad you’re here, Frederick. Please stay with me for awhile?”

“Will,” Chilton said hoarsely, unable to keep the neediness out of his voice. He tipped his chin, searching out Will’s lips with his own, his hands fisting in Will’s shirt when Will met his kiss eagerly.


End file.
